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Video of the Day: ‘Reading Rainbow’ Remixed

By Caroline Stanley on

We’ve already professed our overwhelming love for LeVar Burton to you guys before, so you can only imagine how excited we were to see that the Reading Rainbow host is the latest PBS personality to get the “Icons Remixed” treatment courtesy of John D. Boswell (aka melodysheep). Click through to watch the fantastic video, and let us know how you think it compares to the previous installments of the series. Personally, we wish that he’d found a way to work in the original theme song. Sure the lyrics were a bit nonsensical (“Butterfly in the sky / I can go twice as high / Take a look / It’s in a book / A Reading Rainbow”), but that tune still gets stuck in our head for days. … Read More

Television

‘Adventure Time’: The Animated Kids Show You Should Be Watching

By Sky Friedlander on

If you haven’t gotten into Adventure Time, the animated kid’s series on Cartoon Network, now’s the time; the fifth season debuted earlier this month, and the first episode is available on iTunes. Why would you watch a show created for children, you might ask? We’ve fallen in love with Finn the Human and his shape-shifting pal, Jake, who share a tree house in the magical land of Ooo. That’s not to mention the cast of supporting characters who are more often than not made out of something edible. There are stretchable rainbow unicorns, lemony Frankenstein monsters, and Lumpy Space Princesses who are so ready for boys named Brad. So ready. The storylines are just as varied and unexpected as the characters, but if that doesn’t convince you, here are five more reasons you should be watching. … Read More

Web

What’s On at Flavorpill: The Links That Made the Rounds in Our Office

By Caroline Stanley on

Today at Flavorpill, we discovered a shocking new use for kale: marriage divination. We thought these edible donut shots looked absolutely delicious. We watched poor Sky Ferreira get dumped from a truck in her new video for “Sad Dream.” We found this gorgeous timelapse video of the… Read More

Uncategorized

What’s On at Flavorpill: The Links That Made the Rounds in Our Office

By Alison Nastasi on

Today at Flavorpill, we remembered 11 douchebag writers in movies. We enjoyed Pete Souza’s portrait of a Presidency. We explored modern native art and culture, and listened to Powwow-Step. We watched a documentary about fan films. We discovered an exhibition that tackles Asian stereotypes in comics. We got… Read More

Television

New ‘Downton Abbey’ Season Three Trailer and Stills

By Alison Nastasi on

Last month we shared a trailer with you for Season 3 of Downton Abbey (they’ve since torn it off the web), which makes its UK premiere this month. Sadly, those of us stateside have to wait until January, but PBS has given us with a new peek at the British period drama. You’ll recognize a few repeat moments, including a bickering session between Shirley MacLaine and the Dowager Countess, as well as a bankrupt revelation. There are a few new teasers, including Matt Milne’s towering footman Alfred, O’Brien’s nephew. See what else is in store past the break where we’ve included the trailer and a teaser clip for you completists out there. Head to E! for some brand new stills that show everyone getting their roaring ’20s on. … Read More

Books

Is William Gibson a Modern Day Oracle?

By Emily Temple on

In the latest episode of PBS Digital Studios’ weekly web series Idea Channel, host Mike Rugnetta wonders: could William Gibson — and other sci-fi writers like him — be considered the modern equivalents of Nostradamus? Sure, science fiction writers don’t (generally) claim to have supernatural abilities to see into the future, but they do tend to predict it, and sometimes chillingly well. As this video points out, Gibson predicted the internet, Miku Hatsune and the popularity of reality TV, among a host of other things, with a great deal more accuracy than any so-called oracle. Click through to watch PBS’s highly educational — and highly entertaining — video about Gibson, technology, and the saying of the sooth, and let us know which sci-fi author you consider your own personal oracle (or whether you’re still banking on the Mayans) in the comments. … Read More

Music

PBS Video: Is Dubstep Avant Garde Musical Genius?

By Judy Berman on

Teenagers, brace yourselves: PBS has made a video about dubstep, which means it’s only a matter of time before your parents start asking questions about those electric can opener noises invading the house via your bedroom. In a new Idea Channel clip, host Mike Rugnetta asks whether the genre — which, despite breaking through to the American mainstream, isn’t exactly a critical favorite — can actually be defended as avant-garde musical genius, comparing it to such 20th-century forerunners to electronic music as musique concrète and George Antheil’s Ballet Mécanique. Rugnetta also mentions that pre-World War I Italian Futurist artists would have loved dubstep, as they shared its central aesthetic values: “technology, violence, and speed.” (He reminds us that they were also anti-feminist fascists, so do with that information what you will.) Watch the video below and tell us whether PBS has convinced you to see the genre in a new light, or if you’ll still be tuning out Skrillex for the foreseeable future. … Read More

Art

Watch Bob Ross Get Remixed

By Caroline Stanley on

Back in June, we posted a lovely tribute to Mister Rogers created by John Boswell, the musician and producer behind the fantastic Symphony of Science project, as the first installment of the new “PBS Icon Remixed” web series. Exciting news: Boswell is back, and this time around he’s remixing The Joy of Painting host/American artist Bob Ross and his happy little clouds and happy little trees. Honestly, we can’t think of a more soothing way to start your morning. Click through to check it out now, and be sure to let us know in the comments who you’d like to see Boswell tackle next — our money’s on Lavar Burton. … Read More

Web

10 Great Web Series You Should Be Watching

By Michelle Rafferty on

Imagine a world where you can delete the characters you hate from your favorite TV show. A world in which shows about musical theater aren’t over-produced and make sense. A world in which a cabal of pre-aughts celebrities staff the Burbank IKEA. This isn’t the future, everybody, this is now. Yep, we have a whole lot more than just Dr. Horrible to talk about these days.

While original web programming is still defining itself — from both a creative and business standpoint — it’s also poised to replace traditional TV entirely. But until we get there, we’ll refer to this rapidly growing medium as an entity unto itself. Some web series are excellent because they are so simple in concept, like SNL writer Mike O’Brien interviewing celebrities in his personal closet. Meanwhile, others like Bryan Singer’s H+, which we got to check out at an early screening this week, have special effects people are calling “too good to be on the Internet.”

For those of you who haven’t heard of either of these shows, and are interested in checking the territory out, we’ve rounded up some of the most innovative new series out there, as well as some oldies (which in webisode speak translates to “circa 2008″) that are worth catching up on. And if you’re feeling the weight of your pre-existing TV schedule, never fear! With some episodes clocking in at under five minutes, they’re actually pretty manageable (albeit dangerously addictive). Have a favorite web show you think we should be watching? Please, do share in the comments!  … Read More

Photography

Gorgeous Photography of Phenomena Beyond the Human Eye

By Emily Temple on

Here at Flavorpill, we’re always game to fill our eyes with beautiful images — but we have to admit, we never knew just how beautiful scientific visions of the world could be. In Seeing Beyond the Human Eye, the latest installment of the “Off Book” series from PBS and Kornhaber Brown, artists and scientists discuss the new and developing ways we can experience the world: namely, through microphotography, astrophotography, slow-motion video, and time-lapse video, all of which create gorgeous images not visible with the human eye alone. ”It’s our curiosity and thirst for the unknown that has driven us to uncover the beauty of the universe,” the creators write. “Technology has allowed us to overcome the boundaries of human perception and explore beyond the limits of the naked eye.” Click through to have your mind blown. … Read More